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About me

I'm Andrea. I'm an environmentalist, a gardener, a chicken keeper, a mother and a writer. I'm keen on finding the magic in life, and my blog is partly about noticing and describing what I find beautiful and worthwhile.

I'm in my early 40s, and have been with my husband for half my life! We met at university, just a few blocks from where we live right now, despite having traveled the world for some of those years. Having two children who are each part of us is magnificent and fascinating. They're Jack, aged 11, and Anna, aged 8.

With science-y and bookish streaks, we also enjoy friends, vegetable gardening, green living and playing music. I love making our house lovely and practical, especially with vintage and second-hand finds (I avoid buying anything new whenever possible - our consumerist society makes me shudder).

I mostly I write about science, and have a PhD in zoology. I've never worked as a scientist, apart from some temporary jobs during and between my science degrees. While I was doing my PhD (in the United Kingdom) I entered a science writing competition and as I wrote my entry I had an epiphany and realised that writing is what I was meant to do all along! I came runner up in the competition and that's been the only career for me ever since.

I do my freelance writing from home, slotting it in around family needs and frequent migraines, which mean that no week is ever the same.

Volunteering is also a bit part of my life. I chair our local environment society and do plenty of shifts on children's sports fields.

Welcome

How the heck should we be living on this planet, anyway? Here are some thoughts on that, life with growing-up children, and a spattering of urban self-sufficiency. I hope you enjoy it.

I used to write about backyard chickens on this blog. These days I have a dedicated chicken-keeping blog: www.keepingchickensnz.com. It's a great place for anyone who keeps chickens and wants to learn more about them, or who is keen to leap in and get their own for the first time.